City shuts Roxbury store over violations

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Boston’s Inspectional Services Department closed a Roxbury convenience store with a history of complaints after a sweep of the building revealed several code violations Tuesday night, said Darryl Smith, the department’s assistant commissioner.

Inspectors closed 24seven - which was the site of the ninth homicide in Boston this year - after citing its owners for electrical, building, and health code violations, Smith said. He said the city also shuttered Red Island, a Chinese restaurant nearby on Warren Street, due to code violations including open oil tanks and raw sewage in the basement. A woman who answered the phone at Red Island confirmed that it had been closed and said there were problems with tanks.

Smith said a scan of 24seven revealed several exposed wires so Inspectional Services cut power to the store. A full list of the cited violations was not available. A hearing will be scheduled.

The temporary closing of 24seven came after years of complaints from Grove Hall residents, who reported criminal activity around the storefront, a community activist said. A man in his 20s died of gunshot wounds after police found him in the store early Saturday.

Smith said Inspectional Services has worked with 24seven’s owners in the past year to correct safety violations revealed after a drug arrest in the store.

Michael Kozu, a community coordinator for Project RIGHT, said residents “have made several complaints’’ about 24seven, and some believe its license for all-hours operation should be revoked.